Determining remote control state and user via accelerometer

ABSTRACT

Methods, and system, and entertainment device are provided for identifying a user. A method includes detecting acceleration of a user manipulated component, comparing the detected acceleration with user acceleration that is associated with a user of the electronic device, identifying the user of the electronic device based on the comparison of the detected acceleration and the user acceleration, and operating the electronic device based on the identified user of the electronic device.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This Application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/797,341, filed Mar. 12, 2013, which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/746,706, filed Dec. 28, 2012.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The technical field generally relates to user identification of anelectronic device, and more particularly relates to identification of auser of a television receiver based on acceleration of a remote control.

BACKGROUND

Identification of a user of an electronic device has long been eitherdesirable or necessary, depending on the device and the particularenvironment in which the device is used. For example, access to acomputer system or communication network is often strictly controlled orregulated, especially when the data accessible on such a system is of anextremely sensitive or confidential nature, such as corporate,financial, medical, or military records. Typically, the system beingprotected requires a prospective user to provide some proof of identity,such as a user name and/or password or other confidential data, beforethe user is granted to access the system.

Various circumstances, such as lost or forgotten passwords, stolenpasswords, and other maladies, often lead to either an authorized userbeing denied access to a system, or an unauthorized user being grantedaccess. Also, memorization and entry of user names and passwords, orother identifying information, is often considered tedious and overlytime-consuming.

In response, alternative ways of securely identifying a user have beenimplemented or proposed. For example, the use of fingerprint scanners,retinal scanners, and similar devices which measure some user physicalcharacteristic have been proposed to identify potential users torestrict access to a computer system to those authorized to do so. Theuse of such devices typically eliminates the need to enter a password orother identifying data, thus reducing the time required to access thesecured system. Some systems, however, may not involve the extremelysensitive or confidential data that warrant such intensive securitymeasures.

Accordingly, it is desirable to provide an improved method ofidentifying a user. Furthermore, other desirable features andcharacteristics of the embodiments disclosed herein will become apparentfrom the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, takenin conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background.

SUMMARY

A method is provided for identifying a user of an electronic device. Inone embodiment, a method includes detecting acceleration of a usermanipulated component, comparing the detected acceleration with useracceleration that is associated with a user of the electronic device,identifying the user of the electronic device based on the comparison ofthe detected acceleration and the user acceleration, and operating theelectronic device based on the identified user of the electronic device.

An entertainment system is provided. In one embodiment, theentertainment system includes a remote control and a television receiverconfigured to receive video content from a media service provider. Theremote control is configured to interact with the television receiverand includes control logic. The control logic is operable to detectacceleration of the remote control, compare the detected accelerationwith user acceleration that is associated with a user of the electronicdevice, identify the user of the electronic device based on thecomparison of the detected acceleration and the user acceleration, andoperate the electronic device based on the identified user of theelectronic device.

An entertainment device is provided. In one embodiment, theentertainment device includes an accelerometer and control logic. Thecontrol logic is operable to detect acceleration of the entertainmentdevice using the accelerometer, compare the detected acceleration withuser acceleration that is associated with a user of the entertainmentdevice, identify the user of the entertainment device based on thecomparison of the detected acceleration and the user acceleration, andoperate the entertainment device based on the identified user of theentertainment device.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The exemplary embodiments will hereinafter be described in conjunctionwith the following drawing figures, wherein like numerals denote likeelements, and wherein:

FIG. 1A is a flow diagram of a method in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 1B is a flow diagram of a method in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of an entertainment system inaccordance with an embodiment; and

FIG. 3 is a graphical view of an example of accelerometer data inaccordance with an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and isnot intended to limit the application and uses. Furthermore, there is nointention to be bound by any expressed or implied theory presented inthe preceding technical field, background, brief summary or thefollowing detailed description.

FIG. 1A is a flow diagram describing a method 100 of identifying a userof an electronic device using a remote control. It should be appreciatedthat the remote control may be any user manipulated component, and maybe separate from or integral with the electronic device. In someembodiments, the method 100 is performed for each of a plurality ofusers of the electronic device to associate particular acceleration ofthe remote control with a particular user. In some embodiments, theelectronic device may be an audio/video entertainment device, such as aset-top box adapted to receive radio and/or television signals by way ofsatellite, cable, Internet Protocol, or terrestrial (“over-the-air”)transmission. Other such audio/video devices may include televisions orvideo monitors, audio/video receivers, digital video recorders (DVRs),video cassette recorders (VCRs), digital video disc (DVD) players, andgaming systems. In some embodiments, electronic devices aside fromaudio/video devices, such as computers, personal digital assistants(PDAs), and communication devices may be utilized.

A user is selected in operation 101. In the example provided, the useris selected by entering information associated with the user into theelectronic device using a graphical interface and the remote control. Insome embodiments, users are selected based on an existing list ofpreviously entered users.

User acceleration of the remote control is captured at operation 102. Inthe example provided, the user acceleration includes the magnitude andfrequency of an electronic signal from an accelerometer in the remotecontrol operated by the user, as will be described below. In someembodiments, the user acceleration is captured during events in whichthe user picks up the remote and during events in which the user isholding the remote. For example, the noise pattern from an accelerometerwhen the user is holding the remote may be used to identify theparticular user. In some embodiments, data abstractions are stored basedon the system details and capabilities. For example, such dataabstractions may include average magnitude, harmonic content, or phaserelations between various axes, among others.

The user acceleration is associated with the user in operation 104. Forexample, large acceleration may be associated with a first user rapidlypicking up a remote control, while smaller acceleration may beassociated with a second user gently picking up the remote control. Insome embodiments, one user with a steady hand may be associated withlight acceleration while holding the remote control while another userwith a less steady hand may be associated with a larger accelerationwhile holding the remote control. In some embodiments, an angle of theremote control when held is determined and used with the detectedacceleration to identify the user. The user acceleration associated withthe user is stored in operation 106. For example, the user accelerationmay be stored in the remote control or an electronic device such as aset-top-box, as will be described below.

FIG. 1B is a flow diagram describing a method 140 of identifying a userof an electronic device. For example, the operations of the method 140may be performed by the electronic device or the remote control.Acceleration of a remote control is detected in operation 142. Forexample, a remote control being held by a user has a stronger noisepattern than a remote control that is not currently interacting with auser. In some embodiments, the user acceleration is captured when theuser presses a button on the remote control. In the example provided, aninterrupt in the hardware of the remote control is triggered when anaccelerometer in the remote control outputs an electronic signalindicating acceleration above a threshold.

Components of the remote control are turned on in operation 144. Forexample, the remote control may exit a low power state to interact withthe user. In the example provided, a light emitting diode (LED)indicator light is turned on to indicate that the remote control isready. In some embodiments, other power consuming components are turnedon, such as a backlight for buttons or an optical finger navigation(OFN) interface on the remote control.

The detected acceleration of the remote control is captured in operation152. For example, the remote control may wake up from a low power statebased on the hardware interrupt to begin capturing the detectedacceleration by polling the output of the accelerometer. The detectedacceleration may be captured immediately when the remote is picked up ormay be captured when the user is holding the remote after the remotecontrol has been picked up, as is illustrated below with reference toFIG. 3.

The detected acceleration is compared with the stored user accelerationin operation 154. For example, the magnitude and frequency of theaccelerometer may be compared with previously stored accelerometeroutput that is associated with a particular user. In some embodiments,the detected acceleration is compared with the user acceleration foreach of a plurality of users of the electronic device. The comparisonmethods incorporated may vary based on the degree of identificationdesired, the complexity of the detection circuitry, and the cost of thesystem. Examples of suitable matching methods include Viterbi algorithmmethods, Fano algorithm methods, explicitly calculating the maximumcovariance for each detected associated data pair, or by use of averageamplitude.

In operation 156 the user of the remote control is identified based onthe comparison performed in operation 154. In the example provided, theidentification is based on a closest match between the magnitude andfrequency of the detected acceleration and the magnitude and frequencyof the user accelerations. In some embodiments, the identification isbased on matching the user with the detected acceleration when thedifferences between magnitude and frequency of the stored useracceleration and the detected acceleration are within a predefinedamount.

User specific operating characteristics are loaded in operation 158. Theoperating characteristics may include any information associating theuser with the operation of the electronic device. In the example, theinformation is associated with a media set-top-box. For example, theinformation may include a list of favorite channels specified by theuser, programming recommendations for the user, parental controlinformation associated with the user, purchase information associatedwith the user, remote control codes to control certain devices, and peergroup information associated with the user. In some embodiments, theinformation may indicate whether the identified user is a child to whomsome or all of the functionality of the device may be prohibited, suchas tuning a channel associated with mature content.

The electronic device is then operated based on the user specificoperating characteristics loaded in operation 160. For example, theelectronic device is operated using the user specific operatingcharacteristics loaded in operation 158. When the detected accelerationindicates that the remote control has been set down, operation 162 turnsoff at least some of the components of the remote control. For example,the LED indicator light, the OFN, and the backlight may be turned offwhen the remote control is set down to conserve energy and extendbattery life.

While FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B illustrate a specific order of execution ofoperations, other possible orders of execution may be undertaken inother implementations. The other possible orders of execution mayinclude, for example, concurrent execution of one or more operations. Insome embodiments, a non-volatile computer-readable storage medium mayhave encoded thereon instructions for a processor to implement theoperations.

FIG. 2 illustrates an entertainment system 200 in accordance with anembodiment. The entertainment system 200 includes a television receiveror set-top box 210, a remote control 212, and a monitor 214.

In some embodiments, the set-top box 210 is the electronic devicediscussed above in relation to the methods 100 and 140. The set-top box210 includes control logic 220, an output interface 222, a user inputinterface 224, a signal input interface 226, and a signal processor 228.The set-top box 210 may be a television set-top box for satellite,cable, Internet Protocol, and/or terrestrial television signalreception. Other components, such as a DVR, smart card interface, andthe like, may also be incorporated into the set-top box 210.

The control logic 220 may include any control circuitry capable ofperforming the various operations of the control logic 220 describedbelow, as well as controlling the other components of the set-top box220 set forth above. In the example provided, the control logic 220includes instructions to perform at least some of the operationsdescribed in FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B. For example, the control logic 220 mayinclude instructions to load user specific operating characteristics asindicated by operation 158. The control logic 220 may include one ormore processors, such as a microprocessor, microcontroller, or DSP,configured to execute instructions directing the processor to performthe operations of the set-top box 210. In some embodiments, the controllogic 220 may be hardware-based logic, or may include a combination ofhardware, firmware, and/or software elements.

The user input interface 224 is configured to receive user input from auser, such as by way of the remote control device 212 being operated ormanipulated by the user. As a result, the user input interface 224 mayreceive any wired or wireless signals, such as infrared (IR) or radiofrequency (RF) signals that carry the user input. In some embodiments,the user input interface 224 receives and processes other types of userinput signals emanating from the remote control device 212, such asacoustic or optical signals. In some embodiments, the user inputinterface 224 also includes a control panel or similar construct thatallows the user to provide input more directly to the set-top box 210.

The signal input interface 226 is configured to receive televisionsignals 230. The television signals may include various media content.The television signals 230 may conform to any of several formats, thusdictating in part the specific configuration of the interface 226. Inthe example provided, the television signals 230 are network packetsconforming to the Internet Protocol and the signal input interface 226is a network interface. In some embodiments, the television signals 230are transmitted to the set-top box 210 via satellite, and a parabolicantenna coupled with a low-noise block converter feedhorn (LNBF) (notshown) may capture and down-convert the frequencies of the satellitesignals before passing these signals to the signal input interface 226.In some embodiments the television signals 230 are cable signals wherethe signal input interface 226 may receive the signals 230 by way ofcoaxial cable from a cable head-end or distribution facility. In anotherexample, the television signals 230 are terrestrial signals that thesignal input interface 226 may receive by way of an over-the-air antenna(not shown). In each case, the signal input interface 226 transfers thereceived signals to the signal processor 228 of the set-top box 210.

The signal processor 228 may include any of a number of componentsfunctionally adapted to process the received television signals 230 forultimate transfer to the output interface 222. In one example, thesignal processor 228 includes at least one tuner (not shown) to selectone or more of the received television signals 230 associated with aparticular programming channel. Other processing conducted within thesignal processor 228 may include demodulation, demultiplexing,decryption, and decoding of the television signals 230. Once processed,the signal processor 228 transfers the signals 230 to the outputinterface 222.

The output interface 222 outputs an audio/video output 232 resultingfrom the processing of the television signals 230 to an output device,such as the monitor 214. The output interface 222 may provide theaudio/video output 232 in a number of formats, such as modulated RFoutput, composite video output, component video output, and outputconforming to the High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI).

The user may control various aspects of the signal processor 228, suchas which of the television signals 230 to view, the audio volume of theselected television signal 230, and so on, by way of the remote controldevice 212 and the user input interface 224 in conjunction with visualinformation provided to the user by way of the output interface 222 andthe monitor 214. Other functions, such as general set-top box parametermodification, timer recording, electronic program guide (EPG)presentation, and the like, may also be controlled in such a manner. Tothat end, the control logic 220 generates an image associated with thegraphical user interface. The user then manipulates the remote controldevice 212 to enter user input to the control logic 220 while thecontrol logic 220 provides visual feedback regarding that input to theuser by way of the generated image. The user input may include anyuser-initiated operation, such as volume changes, channel changes, andthe like. In the example provided, the control logic 220 stores the userspecific operating characteristics to be identified with particulardetected acceleration.

In some embodiments, the remote control 212 includes control logic 240and a sensor unit 241. The control logic 240 may include any controlcircuitry capable of performing the various operations of the remotecontrol 212. In some embodiments, the control logic 220 is operable toperform at least some of the operations described in FIG. 1A and FIG.1B. For example, the control logic 220 may capture detected accelerationfrom the sensor unit 241 to identify the user of the remote control 212.The control logic 220 may include one or more processors, such as amicroprocessor, microcontroller, or DSP. In another implementation, thecontrol logic 220 may be hardware-based logic, or may include acombination of hardware, firmware, and/or software elements.

In some embodiments, the remote control 212 is integrated with atelevision receiver, game controller, or other entertainment device. Forexample, the remote control 212 may be integrated with a hybrid massstorage and HID pointer device that has partitions defined for eachuser. The pointer device may then detect when different users are givingpresentations, and may switch to an appropriate presentation for displaybased on the detected user.

The sensor unit 241 illustrated includes an accelerometer 242, agyroscope 244, and a compass 246. The accelerometer 242 is configured todetect an acceleration of the remote control 212 in each of three axes.The gyroscope 244 is configured to detect a rotation of the remotecontrol 212 in each of the three axes. The compass 246 is a magneticcompass configured to detect directional information in each of thethree axes. In some embodiments, the gyroscope 244 and/or the compass246 may be omitted and/or other types of sensor devices may be addeddepending on the nature and/or characteristic of the information that isto be acquired by the remote control 212. In the example provided, thesensor unit 241 is implemented using micro-electro-mechanical systems(MEMS) technologies.

In some embodiments, an LED 248 is incorporated. The control logic 240may turn on the LED 248 when the movement events indicate that theremote control 212 has been picked up. When the movement events indicatethat the remote control 212 has been set down, the control logic 240 mayreduce power to or turn off the LED 248 to conserve energy.

FIG. 3 illustrates a graphical view of data 300 captured from theaccelerometer 242 corresponding to various events. A magnitude 310 isillustrated on the vertical axis and time 312 is illustrated on thehorizontal axis. Event 320 illustrates an example of data that indicatesthat the remote control 212 has been picked up. Accordingly, the event320 may trigger a hardware interrupt in the control logic 240 of theremote control 212.

Event 322 illustrates an example of acceleration data associated with auser holding the remote control 212. In the example provided, thecontrol logic 240 samples the data and performs the comparison operation154 to compare the event 322 with previously stored acceleration dataassociated with known users of the entertainment system 200. In someembodiments, a user may often sit in a rocking chair, which may bedetected by the acceleration data and associated with the user. Theposition or angle of the remote control 212 may also be incorporated toimprove the identification accuracy. For example, a particular user mayhave a tendency to hold a remote at a particular angle.

Event 324 illustrates an example of data associated with a user settingdown the remote control 212. The data associated with event 326indicates that the remote control 212 is resting on a surface and is notinteracting with the user. In some embodiments, the control logic 240may turn off the LED 248, an OFN, or otherwise place the remote control212 into a low power state to conserve energy and extend battery lifewhen the remote control detects the event 326.

While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in theforegoing detailed description, it should be appreciated that a vastnumber of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that theexemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and arenot intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of thedisclosure in any way. Rather, the foregoing detailed description willprovide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map forimplementing the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments. Itshould be understood that various changes can be made in the functionand arrangement of elements without departing from the scope of thedisclosure as set forth in the appended claims and the legal equivalentsthereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of identifying a user of an electronicdevice, the method comprising: detecting an acceleration noise patternof a user manipulated component, wherein detecting the accelerationnoise pattern of the user manipulated component further comprisesdetecting acceleration with an accelerometer and a gyroscope while theuser manipulated component is at rest in a hand of a user of theelectronic device; comparing the detected acceleration noise patternwith user acceleration that is associated with the user of theelectronic device, wherein comparing includes comparing time domain dataof the detected acceleration noise pattern with time domain data of theuser acceleration; identifying the user of the electronic device basedon the comparison of the detected acceleration noise pattern and theuser acceleration; and operating the electronic device based on theidentified user of the electronic device.
 2. The method of claim 1further comprising: selecting the user of the electronic device;capturing the user acceleration; associating the user acceleration withthe user of the electronic device; and storing the user acceleration. 3.The method of claim 1 further including turning on components of theuser manipulated component based on the acceleration of the usermanipulated component and further including turning off the componentsof the user manipulated component based on the detected accelerationnoise pattern indicating that the user manipulated component has beenset down.
 4. The method of claim 1 further including loading userspecific operating characteristics for the identified user, and whereinoperating the electronic device further comprises operating theelectronic device based on the loaded user specific operatingcharacteristics.
 5. The method of claim 4 wherein loading the userspecific operating characteristics further comprises loading at leastone of programming recommendations for the user, a list of favoritechannels specified by the user, parental control information associatedwith the user, purchase information associated with the user, and remotecontrol codes.
 6. The method of claim 1 wherein comparing the detectedacceleration noise pattern with the user acceleration includes comparingthe user acceleration with the detected acceleration when the user picksup the user manipulated component.
 7. The method of claim 1, whereincomparing time domain data with the user acceleration includes comparingusing Viterbi methods, Fano methods, or combinations thereof.
 8. Anentertainment system comprising: a television receiver configured toreceive video content from a media service provider; a remote controlconfigured to interact with the television receiver and includingcontrol logic operable to: detect an acceleration noise pattern of theremote control while the remote control is at rest in a hand of a userof the remote control; compare the detected acceleration noise patternwith user acceleration that is associated with a user of the televisionreceiver, wherein the control logic is further operable to compare timedomain data of the detected acceleration noise pattern with time domaindata of the user acceleration; identify the user of the televisionreceiver based on the comparison of the detected acceleration noisepattern and the user acceleration; and operate the television receiverbased on the identified user of the television receiver.
 9. Theentertainment system of claim 8 wherein the television receiver furthercomprises control logic operable to: select the user of the televisionreceiver; capture the user acceleration; associate the user accelerationwith the user of the television receiver; and store the useracceleration; load at least one of programming recommendations for theuser, a list of favorite channels specified by the user, parentalcontrol information associated with the user, purchase informationassociated with the user, and remote control codes.
 10. Theentertainment system of claim 8 wherein the control logic is furtheroperable to turn on components of the remote control based on thedetected acceleration noise pattern of the remote control and is furtheroperable to turn off the components of the remote control based on thedetected acceleration noise pattern indicating that the remote controlhas been set down.
 11. The entertainment system of claim 8 wherein theremote control further comprises an accelerometer and a gyroscope, andwherein the control logic of the remote control is further operable todetect acceleration with the accelerometer and the gyroscope.
 12. Theentertainment system of claim 8 wherein the control logic of the remotecontrol is further operable to compare the user acceleration with thedetected acceleration noise pattern when the user is picking up theremote control.
 13. An entertainment device comprising: anaccelerometer; and control logic operable to: detect an accelerationnoise pattern of the entertainment device using the accelerometer whilethe remote control is at rest in a hand of a user of the remote control;compare the detected acceleration noise pattern with user accelerationthat is associated with a user of the entertainment device, wherein thecontrol logic is further operable to compare time domain data of thedetected acceleration noise pattern with time domain data of the useracceleration; identify the user of the entertainment device based on thecomparison of the detected acceleration noise pattern and the useracceleration; and operate the entertainment device based on theidentified user of the entertainment device.
 14. The entertainmentdevice of claim 13 further comprising an indicator light, and whereinthe control logic is further operable to turn on components of theentertainment device based on the acceleration of the entertainmentdevice, and where the control logic is further operable to turn off thecomponents of the entertainment device based on acceleration indicatingthat the entertainment device has been set down.
 15. The entertainmentdevice of claim 13 further comprising a gyroscope, and wherein thecontrol logic is further operable to detect acceleration with theaccelerometer and the gyroscope.
 16. The entertainment device of claim13 wherein the control logic is further operable to compare the useracceleration noise pattern with the detected acceleration when the useris picking up the entertainment device.